day 8

Thursday is day 8 of the pull-up density training plan:
-24 kg weighted pull-ups (10x4)
-Bent arm L-sit hold (17 secs)
-50 burpees


1,660/10,xxx

hide from frickin aliens

If one of the smartest men alive today says hide from space aliens, who am I to argue. Actually, I've always thought the search for extra terrestrial life was a waste of time and money, and if we found any intelligent life out there we'd be in big trouble. Now if someone disagrees I can say, "FU, Stephen Hawking thinks so too."

the reservoir

This is a shot looking west across the reservoir in Central Park. It's a little over a mile and a half in circumference. If you time it just right, you can almost have the path all to yourself; almost, because it's nearly impossible to have this little slice of runner's heaven all to yourself. In the fall, the view is spectacular. Here's a shot facing south.



If the res is too short a distance for you, you'll want to run the loop: that's Central Park Drive, which if you take the long way is just a smidge over 6 miles. Unlike the res, the loop offers hills, flats and a great opportunity for people watching. Beware of cyclists, roller-bladers (yes, they still exist), and parents pushing speeding baby carriages.



Today's workout:
-100 KB high-pulls
-DB thrusters (8x2)
-dips (6x10)

irony

While vacationing in Hawaii a few years ago, I picked up a ukulele-not one of those cheesy instruments you get at the souvenir shop along with T-shirts and Mauna Loa macadamia nuts. I actually made the purchase at shop specializing in ukuleles. I liked that the instrument is small and has only for strings. I had the impression that it would be easy to master. Ironically, a violin is roughly the same size and has the same number of strings. No one would call the violin an easy instrument to play. The irony does not stop there. Consider the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. The UOGB has taken the humble ukulele to a place so out there, you can't not respect the instrument nor not be entertained by this wacky ensemble of artists.

More iron-y. Today was day 6 of the weighted chin-up density program. I added more sets of 4: (7x4) + (4x3). I was planning on doing the same with thrusters, but didn't have the energy for it today-rough night.

day 5 of the weighted chin-ups program

It's day 5 of my weighted chin-ups density training program. Before I worked up to the weight of the 24 kg kettlebell, I used a combination of iron plates. It is so much easier to attach a 24 kg kettlebell to the dip-belt, compared to a stack of iron plates. In the past, the plates would abrade the nylon strap or make an annoying ruckus. Now, silence except for the sound of me grunting and wheezing.

It went like this, (5x4's) + (7x3's) for a total of 41 reps in 12 minutes. I used a mix of supinated and neutral grips. The rest of the workout consisted of shrugs & squats (3x12) and overhead presses (10, 11, 12). I like the simplicity of density training, so it's likely that I'll use it for the pressing and squats. Stay tuned.

Kick Ass, a guilty pleasure

The day started off with a kettlebell breathing ladder, 1-20 single arm swings (doubles for mrs. meguro), and then 42 kg suitcase hold for me, your basic griptastic day. No burpees, however. With the exercises out of the way, I'm feeling pretty good and then mrs. meguro suggests we see a matinee while the kids do the homework they had neglected till the last minute. "Cool," says I, "Date Night?" Date Night's just the type of film two adults ilke mrs. meguro and I can identify with: parents trying to keep the spark of romance burning bright while parenthood, jobs and routine conspire to blow it out. "Nah," she says, "let's see Kick Ass." Kick Ass! Here I am volunteering to see a chick flic. Hey, I'm trying to connect.

Violence is not my wife's thing, even if it's the cartoony, over-the-top, hyperviolence seen in the spate of super-hero movies of late. She cringes at every biff, pow, splat. That mrs. meguro would suggest Kick Ass, I can only interpret as an act of love, because movies that go boom, well that's my thing. Kick Ass delivers lots of explosions and carnage with a healthy dollop of dark humor. We found ourselves laughing out loud throughout the film along with the rest of the audience.

Not midway through the movie, the laughter becomes a bit strained. It's one thing to witness the transformation of the least likely character to hero, with hilarious stumbles along the way; it's a common hero story line. The character of Hit Girl in Kick Ass resurrects Taxi Driver's Travis Bickle in a plaid skirt and purple wig. This is when mrs. meguro and I squirmed a little in our seats. Hit Girl metes out vigilante justice like the best of ninja assassins with the mouth and attitude of a war weary marine. Through Hit Girl, we confront the limits of our ability to enjoy violence as entertainment. I've been inured to cinematic violence from overexposure, no matter the level of ferocity. Kick Ass, the movie, breaks age and gender lines and in the process makes pornography of gun play and salty language. I've had enough for a while. For the next date, mrs. meguro and I will see Date Night or another romantic comedy.

drawing the line at middle age

There are certain milestone in life one looks forwards to: becoming a teenager; learning to drive; getting married; your first child. Others you welcome with less enthusiasm. Then there are those you don't remember passing but realize you must have, just like the turn-off on the highway a few miles back.

What tipped me off that I was now among the middle aged was not the greying temples. I've been grey for a while. No, it was the coincidence of my children, a freshly minted teenager and a tween, trying to assert more independence and my father, 83 years old, losing more and more of his. Last Friday, I assumed power of attorney for dad and was appointed executor of his will.

As I watch my children brimming with vitality and compare them with dad, who has lost a lot of his pep, I am reminded of my place in the circle of life. My wife and I are stuck in the middle, between the old and the young. Eventually the young mature and the old pass on. But I... am drawing the line... here. Old age will come for me, but it will have to catch me first.

-24 kg weighted pull-ups (13x3)+1

-Knees to the bar (K2B) 3x11

-100 burpees (last 10 full bastards)

dense enough for you

This week, I started a density training protocol with a goal to accomplish 20 chin-ups augmented with 24 kgs of weight attached to a dip belt. Why you might ask? I have found that grip and pulling strength are extremely valuable when ground fighting a heavier opponent and are advantageous when against an opponent of equal size and skill. Density training is briefly described here.

Part of Tuesday's workout included 40 weighted chin-ups (20x2 for 20 minutes.) I did 2 reps on the minute and rested about 55 seconds between sets. I felt fine, despite all that volume, except for a little tightness in the traps. That was fixed with the foam roller. Today, Thursday, I went with 12x3 + 4x1 in roughly 16 minutes. It was a bit tougher today. My form deteriorated towards the end, necessitating sets of singles.

greatest show on the west side

Before I headed over to the Jacob Javits Convention Center for the New York Auto Show I did a quick routine of 100 kettlebell high-pulls. I'd procrastinated all morning so by the time I was scheduled to go I was left with just a few minutes for training. It was just as well. I don't think I had it in me for 200 high pulls.

There were some truly stunning cars at the show like the Lexus LFA, a supercar destined for a limited production run of 500 vehicles. I found myself gravitating to cars I could see myself driving on a daily basis. I glanced at the exotics and ran my fingers along the flanks of such cars as the Porsche Panamera and the Audi R8, but I was more interested in the rear seat space of the Mini Countryman (bucket seats in the rear!), storage space in the Volvo C30, view from the driver's seat of the VW GTI or Subaru WRX, or seating capacity of the Honda Odyssey.

db cheat curl push-press

I may have mentioned before my intention to obtain a 16 kg kettlebell. If I lived in a house with a backyard and garage, space would not impose an impediment to acquiring all of the gear I'd like to have. My present circumstances, living in a crowded apartment, require me to curb further purchases. Rats!

The point of getting a 16 kg kb is improve my technique on the advanced lifts (c&j and snatch). Swinging and high pulling my 24 kg is no problem, but learning on a 24 makes for slow going. It's the damned shape and balance of the kb that make these lifts so difficult compared to db's. Why bother? Before I make any more purchases and in a move against the kb trend, I devised the db cheat curl push-press to mimic a kb c&j. My variation is to incorporate a Tyler fat grip and full upper body English to get the db up and down.

I've been using the Tyler grips mostly for pressing and static holds. This is the first time I employed them in a "ballistic" type lift. The cheat curl portion of the exercise, especially with the fat grip, is a hand-full!

Today's work-out:

-105 burpees (8'57")

-45 lbs. db cheat curl push press (3x10)

1100/10,xxx